Presidential lesson on economics

First, he insists there are no quick fixes or silver bullets to lower gas prices. But a White House spokesman said last week, “We’re not taking anything off the table.” If there is nothing to be done, then nothing is on the table. On the other hand, if something can help, then it makes sense to pursue all those options. He can’t have it both ways.

Story Continued Below

More important, there was something to be done — and the president chose not to do it. Even if additional energy production won’t change the price of oil and gasoline much, it could generate economic activity — spending, hiring, dividend payouts, the list goes on — that makes it easier for our struggling economy to bear the burden of high prices.

Obama’s fixation on government-driven green energy — which doesn’t come close to being competitive now — has cost the nation that potential growth.

A recent report compares Obama’s actual energy policy with a pro-development alternative that included opening lands for drilling, easing permitting, approving the Keystone XL pipeline, leaving regulation of fracking to the states and other options. In other words: the options on the table.

The president’s policies eliminated the equivalent of roughly 1.27 million barrels of oil per day between 2010 and 2015, the Wood Mackenzie study suggests, more than 650,000 jobs and $36 billion in government revenue. Over the same period, those jobs translate to a loss in incomes totaling more than $100 billion. These might be relevant considerations for a president who hopes to be in office every one of those years.